At its April 9 meeting, the Port of Grays Harbor Commission approved an "Option to Lease” property at Terminal 3 to Grays Harbor Rail Terminal, LLC, a local subsidiary of U.S. Development (USD).

The option was granted a month after U.S. Development presented its findings from a preliminary feasibility study resulting from an Access Agreement that began in September 2012. At the March port commission meeting, USD reported its findings were consistent and supportive of its plans to construct a crude oil rail unloading and storage facility at the site. The crude oil would be transferred from rail cars to storage for ultimate loading aboard vessels and barges.

The Option to Lease allows Grays Harbor Rail Terminal 24 months to go forward with further analysis and to obtain the permits required to make the project shovel-ready. Upon approval of the necessary permits and other requirements, Grays Harbor Rail Terminal would then seek a long-term lease with the port.  

"Liquid bulk storage and shipping would be an excellent addition to the Terminal 3 activity base," commented Port Executive Director Gary Nelson. "The proposed project will not impact our existing tenant, and further compliments the efforts to diversify our cargo and employment portfolio for the community."